Should Your Kids Be Vegan?

A new children’s book heralding the widespread benefits of veganism is stirring more pots than PETA. Vegan Is Love: Having Heart and Taking Action, now in stores, has nutritionists, psychologists, and even gossip columnists, asking whether veganism is appropriate for kids—and, more poignantly, how we should be talking to little ones about the ethics and politics of food. On Today, Matt Lauer wondered if the title itself suggested that “if you’re not a vegan, is it about hate?” while a widely read Hollywood gossip columnist asked, “Would you read this book to your child?” On FOX News, child psychologist Dr. Robert Epstein called the book “the most disturbing children’s book I’ve ever seen.”

Author-illustrator Ruby Roth’s intent in writing Vegan Is Love was to judge—at least a little bit. Through clear, simple dialogue and colorful illustrations of smog-covered land and sad animals in cages and zoos, the book calls on children to start protecting animals, the environment, and starving kids in Africa through a plant-based diet. It explores complex themes like animal cruelty, big agriculture, and world hunger, and while the message is not overly heavy-handed, Roth doesn’t dance around the idea that she believes eating meat will destroy the Earth and everyone we love, and soon—a heady concept for a kid, for sure.

John Bagnulo, PhD, MPH, who teaches nutrition in Kripalu Healthy Living programs, says that kids can be very healthy as vegans, but it’s important to remember that it’s not as simple as “just eat plants.” For example, a vegan diet for children that is mostly grain, flour, and fruit juice is much more unhealthy than one that’s mostly fruits and vegetables with, say, small amounts of fish, he says. “So many vegetarian and vegan parents embark on this journey with the misconception that kids have the same nutritional needs as adults,” says John. “Nothing could be further from reality. Kids’ brains are developing so fast and there is clear evidence that high-quality essential fatty acids, like those found in oily fish, are a factor in brain development. You can also get these nutrients in raw walnuts, raw pumpkin seeds, freshly ground flax seeds, and power-packed specific greens such as purslane.” But getting them is essential. B12 and zinc are also critical.

Beyond the nutrition, what about the politics: How—and how much—should we tell our children about eating choices we’ve made for our families and ourselves? How do we talk to them about the philosophies discussed in Vegan Is Love without unwittingly encouraging them to judge others? The bottom line, says John: Keep it simple. “We tell our kids daily that people make different choices about how to live their lives and what to eat, and have different priorities,” he says. “There is no judgment—just the truth about choice and the effects it can have on our lives and the lives of others. We never make it a moral issue. That’s important. Our 4-year-old already gets it. Our 2-year-old couldn’t care less; he eats whatever we serve. I realize that they are young and will undoubtedly embark on their own journey when they get older, and to some extent, that will be their choice. But for now, they eat what we eat and enjoy it as much as any kid enjoys any other food.”

In a press release, Roth is unwavering in her message. “It’s high time we engage youth in topics previously reserved for adults: democracy, supply and demand, and engaging ourselves in the public realm,” she says. After all, she points out: Fast food companies don’t think your kids are too young to be marketed to.

Why is that? It makes you sound defensive and mean-spirited. Not wearing dead skin is certainly the less cruel of the two choices. Dying boll weevils do not justify killing cows for clothes, the argument is pitiably backward.

http://pulse.yahoo.com/_IPAX3NBES5QURDVXUFEASUACZQ Paul T

Every time I read about someone trying to force the vegan lifestyle on people, I think of this bible verse…1 Now
the Spirit speaks expressly, that in the latter times some shall depart
from the faith, giving heed to seducing spirits, and doctrines of
devils;
2 Speaking lies in hypocrisy; having their conscience seared with a hot iron;
3 Forbidding
to marry, and commanding to abstain from meats, which God has created
to be received with thanksgiving of them which believe and know the
truth.
1Timothy ch4

http://profile.yahoo.com/7V6MHGFZVGC7V5THXP63HJDRDQ Stephen

Can you god-botherers ever discuss anything without referring to that 2000+ year-old game of telephone you consider a holy book?

Everything in moderation, including food AND mythology.

guest

huh? what is “game of telephone” forgive me i am not up to date on atheist jargon

Stephen do yourself a favor and don’t even try to insult people or there beliefs, you sound just as pompous when doing so.

And studying biology and Antropology, plus watching people that i know do that and then watch them waste away they deny proper nutrition…. Veganism has no true merit, look at nature at the omnivores, Humans are Omnivores…

http://profile.yahoo.com/7V6MHGFZVGC7V5THXP63HJDRDQ Stephen

Can I insult *their* intelligence?

http://twitter.com/ron_calliou Ron Calliou

Still though… he said you could have a steak… can’t be that bad can it? I’ll have my ribeye medium rare thank you…

John

Love it as I am trying to remain vegan forever! I would rather starve and act humanely if I had non-vegan food which I knew for sure was non-vegan.

http://pulse.yahoo.com/_N2GRQBUTVO3IJUKF3ZNVRLBQTI piecesparts

Yeah, sure. You’d starve before eating an egg. I’m sure your ancestors are glad they went to all the trouble of surviving to produce you; for clearly you are at the pinnacle of evolution. Only people who have never in their lives experienced TRUE hunger could have the audacity to make such an asinine statement.

http://twitter.com/ron_calliou Ron Calliou

said the man with a full stomach…. You have no idea what starvation is if you make a comment like that…. I don’t recommend your eating habits but you are for sure free to choose how you eat. But don’t make an asinine comment about starvation… its not pretty .. not pretty at all..

Anonymous

Then you are mentally ill and you should be locked up.

John

I also have heard that organic, local food is a must when going vegan.

Guest

I tried a vegan diet, but they kept on running away

MyName

“How—and how much—should we tell our children about eating choices we’ve made…?”
Tell them everything! Kids will never just know what to eat to have a balanced diet. We have to educate them. Don’t make it a secret. Don’t let them figure it out. Drill this into their heads from the moment you start letting them eat solid food.

Eating habits are too hard to change as we get older.

Mike

Not all vegans do it for the humanity of how we should treat animals… Some do it for the humanity of of they treat their bodies.

Mike

..Not all vegans do it for the humanity of how we should treat animals…
Some do it for the humanity of how they treat their bodies.

KripaluEditor

Thanks for all of the great comments, folks! Keep them coming!

Benoit from Ottawa

““It’s high time we engage youth in topics previously reserved for
adults: democracy, supply and demand, and engaging ourselves in the
public realm,” she says. After all, she points out: Fast food companies
don’t think your kids are too young to be marketed to.”

So because MacDo’s (etc.) does its best to brainwash and indoctrinate kids though advertising, vegans should do the same with 4-year-olds? I do not agree.

Benoit from Ottawa

Bill337711

Watch the movie Respeto. The Machine Gunner was raised vegan by “hippy” pacifists…Force feeding stuff to children often leads to rebellion later in life. On another note I applaud a Vegan or vegiterian diet for allot of adults, but children need ALOT of calories.

http://twitter.com/ron_calliou Ron Calliou

Nope….

http://butterflyist.com/ Andrea – Butterflyist

Why shouldn’t children know where their food is coming from and that their ‘meat’ was actually a living, sentient being before it got to their plate, that it was an animal that feels pain, joy, depression, sadness etc in very similar ways as humans do? I’m shocked at how close-minded people are regarding veganism, I only wish that as a child I had been given the opportunity to have my eyes opened to the horrific suffering that goes on in the name of human pleasure. If I’d been given this information as a child, I’d have wanted to choose living a compassionate life, rather than be complicit in the barbaric violence we inflict on animals for no better justification than they “taste good.”

I disagree with Ruby Roth though – to me it is a moral issue. The evidence for our ability to not only survive, but positively thrive, on a healthy, well-balanced, plant-based diet is abundant. So once people know the true facts about what is involved in the production of ‘meat’, then their only justification for continuing to eat it is that they enjoy the taste. This is not enough justification for what is quite frankly, a excruciating and tortured life to the animal. I have enjoyed eating animal produce – cheese or meat etc – in the past. But once I found out the truth, I knew I could not morally continue to do so, and so became vegan. It’s not about me, it’s about doing what is right. And what is right is not having torture and suffering inflicted on other beings simply because they taste nice in sauce.

http://profiles.google.com/n.k.h.73908513321516 Nathan Harvey

As someone who was vegetarian for years, I think it’s fine to tell children that meat comes from animals, and to let them know that animals have emotions and other mental processes. That’s being honest. It’s also good to point out that human beings only began evolving larger brains when they entered new ecological niches through scavenging meat, and that meat eating is strongly statistically associated to large brains across the animal kingdom. It’s important to point out that developing children who don’t eat meat have to substitute larger quantities of other protein sources to provide the same levels of essential amino acids required for strong neural development. This is possible, but it is much easier if you have a cultural palate that has built in such foods, and many vegan parents fail. It is also important to share with them that failure can lead to many common issues, such as ADHD, mania, depression, and other typical developmental problems, and that it is very common to see these in children raised vegan because their parents have failed them.

Honesty is important in one’s relationship with their children. But that means honesty across the board. Being realistic about nutrition does not just mean making an ethical decision towards what is being eaten: it is also an ethical decision about what is being developed. Life feeds on life. This is necessary.

Mattthatguy

you make a valid point, but I disagree with you. I don’t enjoy the slaughtering of innocent animals. I don’t enjoy rendering their flesh from their bodies or enjoy dissecting their remains for meat and bones. But I do it. I eat my veggies too, but I found out that with a garden of greens you get a garden of blood.

There are gradations, Mguy. A few cups of blood is different from a few gallons of blood. Your line of thinking is bowing to your taste buds and giving your compassion the finger.

smz99

As a kid I knew exactly where the venison came from when my brother in law went hunting. I helped him clean the animal as well. It tasted great!

If you get your panties all in a knot over the poor widdle animals, and support their rights over your fellow human beings, then you have some serious issues you need to work out.

Also… We can’t even stop the 2nd largest religion in the world from strapping bombs to their own children, how are we going to tell them to stop eating goat and lamb “For the planet”?

Over Under

Right on!

t.james

not sure how animals became more important than people…i do know ive been attacked by more animals than than humans over the years. Some Muslims may change that, if they get the chance….

BuildSpirit

How is your judgment of reality any better than someone elses? Who is supporting anyone’s rights over anyone elses?

Contemptyc

Nice to know all you need is a guest account to be an expert. Live your own life and judge only yourself. Labels don’t make people.

K P

T H A N K Y O U.

http://www.movies-suck.com/ Wastrel Way

Veganism is an eating disorder. First, it can’t be done, strictly speaking. You will inevitably eat the odd animal product or the weevil that was ground up with the flour. You can omit things from your diet if you please, but to omit an entire category of things (for reasons unrelated to food quality or flavor, in fact) is an obsessive-compulsive behavior. Second, the human species is omnivorous. Our nutritional requirements, dentition and digestive system show that we evolved to have meat in our diet. Those with the compulsion to not eat meat should (and in fact, must) take food supplements made in laboratories or derived from dead animals.

Tina

Veganism is an eating disorder: False. Although some (read, very few) vegans have eating disorders, most vegans are making a political statement (not wanting crop land to be used for animals when there are people starving, animal husbandry contributing to global warming, etc.)Those with the compulsion to not eat meat should (and in fact, must) take food supplements made in laboratories or derived from dead animals: False. You can definitely get all of the essential amino acids and vitamins etc. from a plant-based diet.

Maru

‘Veganism is an eating disorder’ is the funniest and most ignorant comment I have heard in years. Ignorance is not bliss, ignorance is ignorance and it is not something to be proud of. Oh well…

We didn’t get to the top of the food chain to eat freakin salad every day. Does any other species sit there and feel terrible about the food they eat because “It had feelings too?” Please.

More juicy steak for me!

Tina

A lot of vegans (and this book) aren’t really worried about the animals’ feelings… rather they are worried about the ecological effects. The fact that animal husbandry on massive scales is putting a lot of methane into the air; the fact that dedicating land to animal husbandry also means taking away land that could be (and in many cases once was) dedicated to growing plants for human consumption, which leads to people not having land to grow affordable food for their families.. but i’m not going to preach to you so i’ll leave the list at etc. etc.

Mattthatguy

so it’s not okay to eat them, but it’s not okay to let them live either because of the methane they produce.

K P

**shakes head** Dude, their numbers wouldn’t be so high except that we raise them in those numbers for the sole purpose of human consumption. I’m not going to get into it with you, I’m not one of those “be like me or else” vegetarians, but at least leave the logical fallacies at the door.

Maru

The emptiness of your arguments is pathetic.

dwinkle

I can’t believe beating your children with a tire chain is considered abuse, but feeding them gerbil food isn’t.

Guest

I saw a similar fad in the late 1980’s and early 1990’s. Some parents then decided they did not want overweight children, so they cut out the fats, starting in infancy. The result was developmental delay. In a few extreme cases, the failure to develop mentally was permanent. Any dietary considerations for children need to be take a well thought out and balanced approach. The human digestive tract is most similar biologically to other omnivorous animals. People choosing to refrain from consuming animal products need to take time and effort to plan a healthy diet. As to destroying the world, I guess people pick and choose their own battles. From my perspective there are many more immediate concerns than livestock consuming grain.

VeganZ

Please share the “evidence” from the ’80s & 90’s, and before you do please note: do you have claws, a short digestive tract with an acidic system that can
digest raw flesh or
another mammals raw milk without fear of
disease (bears and raccoons are
omnivores)??? Know this is not what
most want to hear after many years
of being told/SOLD a MAD (meat
and dairy) diet, but we human animals
are, in fact, herbivores: http://veganzeitgeist.org/2012…

It is exciting to have this conversation sparking so many comments. Just please keep in mind that it is important to avoid personal insults. Please read our Terms of Use http://kripalu.org/blog/thrive/terms-of-use/ for further information on how to respond in a respectful way.

Thank you for reading and sharing,
Kim A. from Kripalu

Levrat

So what makes us humans think that plants (rocks, dirt, atoms, quarks) do not feel pain, emotion? We are a mutual eating society. Everything eats and gets eaten. Just be respectful and aware of nature and it’s abundance. That’s the best we can hope to do.

http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=1270108208 Shannon Gausten

Being “vegan” does not mean things don’t die to feed you. The very SOIL is fertilized with factory farmed animal poo, bones, and other things. When you harvest plant matter with combines, mice, birds, rabbits, foxes, snakes, etc DIE IN THE MACHINE. Rice kills TONS of water life when harvested.

Humans are OMNIVORES. We evolved eating meat.
I have NEVER met a vegan who wasn’t pale and sickly, and anemic.
It is SICK to push this on your child.

K P

Then you haven’t met any vegans with any knowledge of nutrition. Your experiences betray you on this one. Vegans can be much more healthy than meat eaters, IF they know how to do it correctly.

KripaluEditor

KP,
Thanks for taking the time to read and comment. It is always good to remember there are different are ways to sustain ourselves, and what works for one might not work for others.
Kim A. for Kripalu

VeganZ

Please share “Kripalu editor” how consuming other sentient beings, and/or secretions from a foreign mammal, is in any way shape or form beneficial for human “herbivores” who are designed to live 120+ years!?

This is a health and wellness website for humans, is it not!?
Please see previous comments (facts):

John Bagnulo, PhD, MPH really needs to catch up with the latest in Vegan nutrition. Does not yet know that B12 and zinc is an issue for meat and dairy (MAD) eaters also, and that mad eaters lack 4 additional nutrients relative to Vegans? Recommending fish (all water creatures now test positive for methylmercury — talk about arresting brain, and proper nervous system development) for children was so misguided, would not know where to start! PLEASE see Dr. Micheal Greger’s research at nutritionfacts.org

VERY interesting that Kripalu has not ever shared this very basic knowledge about human biology and diet!? Much too interested in profiteering from human’s dis-ease?”

Clearly this MAD diet is why we are living only 1/2 our natural
lifespan; we are designed for 120+ years. Yes there is much science to
back this up, but healthy humans do not make money for dis-ease
profiteers (medical, alternative or not, industries). Here is just one
study of the human lifespan, beyond all the profit driven disinfo from
the MAD industries: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/16075672

KripaluEditor

Hi VeganZ,

Thanks so much for taking the time to respond.

We try to present a balanced look at nutrition and healthy eating habits
through interviews and articles related to our faculty, guests, and invited presenters.

We are always interested in new research to inform the discussion.
Please feel free to take a look at this link to look for relevant articles and
interviews: http://kripalu.org/article/288

Kim from Kripalu

VeganZ

That was a very sad response. Feels like I’m talking to a computer. Very sorry you felt no need to actually read my questions or respond to them. I guess it’s true that Kripalu is much more focused on profit than truth!

KripaluEditor

Hi VeganZ,

Our goal is to hold the space for conversation–for people to explore what works for them and for varying viewpoints to be shared.

I have brought some questions to our nutritionist and will share what I learn when I hear back.

Thank you for taking the time to comment with your thoughtful responses.

Kim from Kripalu

KripaluEditor

Hi VeganZ,

Here is some further information from John Bagnulo, PhD, regarding nutrition and children.

We are grateful for the discussion, but please keep in mind that our mission is to hold the space for civil discussion.

Thanks, everyone, for reading and participating!
Kim from Kripalu

The debate on the subject of raising vegan kids is centered around how
much of each nutrient children need to develop normally and maintain a healthy
immune system. There is no doubt that mercury levels in fish are a concern and
that fish should be consumed responsibly in order to not cause ill health in
humans or the oceans. However, there are sustainably harvested fish that have
insignificant or low levels of mercury that are beneficial to growing children
and, in my opinion, are worth considering.

Very small amounts of eggs, small oily fish, and
shellfish offer excellent brain supportive nutrients with no associated health
risks if sourced from healthy, humanely-raised hens, and clean, well-monitored
waters/marine practices.
Over the course of human evolution, human physiology has developed the ability
to do quite well with very limited amounts of certain nutrients and has held
significant daily requirements for others. Some of these nutrients we
need regularly are more easily absorbed from an oyster than from a bean or from
a grain. In fact, great effort has to be made on behalf of the consumer
to prepare these foods in a way that will allow the body to effectively absorb
some of these nutrients from grain or legumes. Fermentation is an example of this. If parents are well
educated and have the time and energy to include all of these plant
sources and prepare them accordingly, I think it is definitely possible to get most of
what we need for our kids. I do, however, think it is healthy to offer children
small amounts of certain animal foods that are rich in these specific nutrients and are
low on the food chain.

Shannon, we know things die to feed us. Eating vegan is a choice to cause measurably less harm, nobody is claiming sainthood or shooting for perfection. This argument reads like “since people pollute by driving cars, might as well give up and pollute constantly.” There is no sense to the argument whatsoever, in fact it is an accusation rather than an argument. It amounts to finger pointing at people who are trying to do some good.

Your capitals suggest some real emotion on the topic. Have you been browbeaten by ill-informed vegans or something? If you have, I am sorry. Nobody should push dietary choices on you, your heart is your only dependable guide.

Maru

You have never met a vegan that was not pale and anemic… when do you want to meet me? Don’t be ridiculous.

Clearly this MAD diet is why we are living only 1/2 our natural lifespan; we are designed for 120+ years. Yes there is much science to back this up, but healthy humans do not make money for dis-ease profiteers (medical, alternative or not, industries). Here is just one study of the human lifespan, beyond all the profit driven disinfo from the MAD industries: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/16075672

Many of the comments in this thread are, well, wrong as a flamethrower on an ice rink, if that’s the image I’m after.
No sensible vegans think that they are causing no harm. Choosing a vegan diet is opting to cause less harm. It’s that simple.
These arguments (I didn’t climb this high on the food chain to eat rabbit food, Really???) are older and wronger than your grandpa’s argyle socks. Pick up a book for heaven’s sake.

KripaluEditor

Hi Karl,
Welcome back to the blog! It is great to have your input here regarding this hot-button issue, especially since you’ve written about this topic, as well.
Thanks for sharing your thoughts, friend!
Kim A. for Kripalu

K P

Right, except that biologically kids NEED the protein and fat from meat because they are growing. I’m a vegetarian and have been for more years than I can count, but I understand that. Eating meat is about choice. Talk to your kids about it, sure, but make sure they get the nutrition they need first, and then as they get older they can start making CHOICES about what they eat.

Maru

I think anybody that dares to object veganism should be better informed first instead of only repeting slogans and myths about our bodies’ actual needs and the availability of those nutrients they defend, from non animal sources. The protein myth (justification for a frivolous and unhealthy habit of self indulgment) is specially pathetic.

What I find the most interesting, overall, is to recognize how vegetarians/vegand at least took a minute of their lives to actually question something they were told, investigated on it and made a decision. Meat eaters on the other hand, can not even remember at what point in their lives they actually made a conscious decision about what they eat and why. And they cant remember that moment because it had not happened. I know amazing vegan parents that have raised vegan children, whose health is impeccable, apart from the fact that they live ethical and compassionate lives. And being able to teach that to a child from something as basic as the food we choose to eat, has a powerful value.Yes, vegans can have unhealthy habits if diet is not monitored. However, being omnivorous is not a synonym of diversity and health, but very often the contrary.

Ann

I don’t care what anyone else does or eats, but personally, I had so many allergies, was tired all the time, and had an extra 20 pounds hanging around, so I tried a vegan diet. After 6 months, the excema and allergies I had literally disappeared, weight came off very quickly and easily and I felt a kind of peace I had never known before. I bought a few cookbooks and googled a lot of recipes and found a whole new wonderful world of food! It’s been a very exciting process full of rewards for my personal journey.

VeganZ

Human animals need to learn that Earth is OUR planet: flesh (12-25 pounds of grain, and 1000-5000 gallons of water to produce ONE pound of flesh), and dairy (1000+++ gallons of water to produce ONE gallon of milk) consumption is killing her!

John Bagnulo, PhD, MPH really needs to catch up with the latest in Vegan nutrition. Does not yet know that B12 and zinc is an issue for meat and dairy (MAD) eaters also, and that mad eaters lack 4 additional nutrients relative to Vegans? Recommending fish (all water creatures now test positive for methylmercury — talk about arresting brain, and proper nervous system development) for children was so misguided, would not know where to start! PLEASE see Dr. Micheal Greger’s research at nutritionfacts.org

VERY interesting that Kripalu has not ever shared this very basic knowledge about human biology and diet!? Much too interested in profiteering from human’s dis-ease?

BuildSpirit

Its all perspective, no judgment just truth. Some people can look an animal in the eye and slaughter it to eat it, eating its flesh, others cannot. Some can tolerate the fact most mass produced meat is fed cloned food, and kept in small boxes for much of its life, some cannot. Some don’t mind what they eat and become, others do and want better quality. Yes you can get better quality anything, of any type, but many are happy just putting whatever processed junk they can find in their mouth, while others want quality for the bodies, minds, emotions and souls. In the end it depends what you want out of life, lots of energy, a good healthy long, happy balanced life or less of that

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